Undefeated middleweight prospect Cem Kilic will now face fellow undefeated prospect DeAndre Ware Friday, September 28, in the opening bout onShoBox: The New Generation live on SHOWTIME at 10 p.m. ET/PT from Pechanga Resort Casino in Temecula, Calif.
The eight-round fight will now be contested at 168-pounds. Ware replaces Donnie Marshall, a natural middleweight, who elected to pull out of the fight when the scheduled 160-pound bout moved to 168 pounds.
In the previously announced 10-round main event, top undefeated lightweight prospect Devin Haney will face three-time world title challenger Juan Carlos Burgos. The co-feature of the second Friday of back-to-back ShoBox telecasts will feature an immediate rematch of one of 2018’s most controversial fights between lightweights Thomas Mattice and Zhora Hamazaryan.
“It’s a great opportunity for me,” said Ware. “I don’t know much about him other than he seems to be a come-forward guy, but I’m not too worried about him. I’m in shape and ready. I’ve stayed in shape since my fight in June.
“This is the biggest stage of my career so far, and I’m excited to be able to show the world what I can do.”
Ware, (12-0-2, 8 KOs), of Toledo, Ohio, is coming off the most impressive performance of his career when he upset previously unbeaten Puerto Rican Olympian Enrique Collazo on June 9 in Brooklyn, N.Y. Unbeaten 30-year-old Ware has won four straight contests after back-to-back draws in early 2017. Kilic will be his second consecutive undefeated opponent.
A former collegiate football player at the University of Toledo, Ware turned professional in 2014 after an impressive amateur career where he competed in approximately 80 fights. In addition to his professional boxing career, the 5’9” Ware also works fulltime as a firefighter in his hometown. Trained by Lamar Wright, Ware has sparred with fellow Toledo natives including former IBF World Lightweight champion Robert Easter Jr. and Tyler McCreary, the WBA No. 4 ranked featherweight.
